There are days when just reading about how to keep motivated seems too much trouble, let alone doing anything about it. So a good way to get motivated about getting motivated is to think about the knock-on effects if you don't - missed assignment, failed degree, no job, no friends, miserable life, solitary death.

But avoid dwelling on failure. While you need to listen if your tutor says he has never read a worse essay, try to concentrate on the positives. Maybe you have been praised for your imaginative use of research material, or for your enthusiastic approach to the subject. Enthusiasm is a great motivator, so try to get excited about what you are doing. The more passion you feel for your work, the more likely you are to persevere with it if you meet setbacks, such as discovering you aren't any good at it.

If you can't summon up enough excitement about the subject of your degree to keep you going, think about all the other reasons there are for getting on with things. Consider how learned you will become once you get through the books on your reading list. Visualise yourself on graduation day, holding the cheque Granny promised if you ever managed to complete a course.

It is worth bribing yourself. Set clear goals, and promise yourself a sixth listen to last night's romantic answerphone message or another look at that ice-skating dog on YouTube once you've achieved them. Until then, avoid distractions. Switch off your email alert until you've finished. Don't text friends to see if they've been talking about you on Facebook. If they text you, ignore them.

Don't ignore them if their texts are designed to be motivational. Friends can be a valuable source of support when you're struggling to get going on your own, so it can be useful to identify someone you work well with and arrange to study together. This only works if neither person confuses the word "study" with "sleep".

Your peers are even more useful as a source of competition. There is nothing more motivating than fearing that your thick neighbour is going to get a better mark than you, just by putting in more work. Revel in your competitiveness, and don't let anyone else get ahead.

Do make sure you relax sometimes though, otherwise life will seem grim. And think up ways to make work more fun. Try studying in a different library, or using different coloured pens.

Catalogue all the things you have achieved so far, and remember the nice things people have said about you. If they haven't, say them about yourself. Ultimately, the best way to keep yourself motivated is to discover what incentive works best for you - praise, rivalry, doughnuts - and build it into your work schedule. If all else fails, there's always the option of leaving Post-it notes around your room telling you to "Just Do It".